Colombian president, Juan Manuel Santos, thanked his Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chávez and the Venezuelan authorities for the capture of Nilson Albín Tehran Ferreira, second in command of the rebel group known as the National Liberation Army (ELN).

At a government ceremony on Monday at the Presidential Palace (government headquarters), Santos thanked Venezuela for its cooperation. "I want to highlight this fact and thank President Chavez and the Venezuelan authorities for the increasing cooperation on all fronts, including, as here shown, the security front, "said the head of the Colombian state.

The Colombian president said that Terán Ferreira "had 13 arrest warrants and was sentenced to 40 years in prison in June 2007 by the Criminal Court of the Specialized Circuit of Valledupar (northern Colombia) for the kidnapping and subsequent murder of a renowned rancher.”

Colombian Foreign Minister, Maria Angela Holguín, said that the capture in Venezuela of the second leader of the ELN is a good sign of the efforts made to improve the relations of the two South American countries.

"Colombia and Venezuela can work together for safety, and ensure that the armed groups who are on the border can be captured, "said the Colombian diplomat.

In November, Venezuela deported two other ELN members to Bogotá and one member of the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).